According to the Portuguese Automobile Association (ACAP), at the end of 2021, there were a total of 5.41 million passenger cars with Portuguese registration, 2 percent more than in 2020. Of these, 25 percent (1.35 million) had their first registration before 2001.

This situation has environmental effects: vehicles over 20 years old at the end of last year only met the Euro 2 emission standard, which was in force for new registrations between 1997 and the end of 2000, while older cars have fewer safety features on board.

The situation also contributes to the aging of the Portuguese fleet: in 2021, each Portuguese car had an average age of 13.5 years, 0.3 years more than at the end of 2021. According to ACAP, only 18.7 percent of vehicles registered in Portugal are less than five years old.

According to a report by ECO, to reverse this trend, automobile associations have demanded the return of incentives for scrapping older vehicles for the purchase of new vehicles. In recent years, only direct support has been given to the purchase of fully electric cars from the Environmental Fund.

In terms of taxation, the older the car, the lower the revenue collected: all cars registered before June 30, 2007 only pay a single circulation tax (IUC), depending on the cylinder capacity.

Vehicles registered on or after 1 July 2007 pay IUC on cylinder capacity and pollutant emissions.

Renault with most cars

Renault is the brand with the most vehicles registered in Portugal, with a total of 678,602, which corresponds to 12.5 percent ​​of the entire fleet of passenger cars. Peugeot and Volkswagen follow in second and third positions, with 9 percent and 8.3 percent of registrations, respectively.

In terms of density, the district of Faro has the fewest inhabitants per car, with 1.6 units. On the other hand, the district of Bragança has a total of 2.4 inhabitants per car.